iOS and iPadOS to Get Redesigned Google Apps

Updated on October 13th, 2021

Google is rethinking the design of its apps for iOS and iPadOS. Currently, all apps have shared UI components according to their design language. The staff engineering lead for Google Design on Apple platforms, Jeff Verkoeyen, posted ā Twitter thread giving insights into the design tweaks that are being implemented for Google apps for iOS and iPadOS platforms.

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“At the beginning of this year, my team began a deep evaluation of what it means to build a hallmark Google experience on Apple platforms by critically evaluating the space of “utility” vs key brand moments, and the components needed to achieve either,” writes Jeff Verkoeyen. “Does a switch really need to be built custom in alignment with a generic design system? Or might it be sufficient to simply use the system solution and move on?” are some of the questions the team pondered over.

Eventually, the team has combined the “best of UIKit with the highlights of Google’s design language.” After the design tweaks, the need for many custom components has been eliminated. And, the remaining custom components now get more attention and focus. “App bars become UINavigationControllers. Standard controls just need light branded touches. Lists can align with modern UITableView and list-based collection view APIs. Menus are just UIMenus,” added Verkoeyen.

Post the UIKit improvements for iOS platforms, it is now easy to build a great branded experience with a tiny amount of code. The time that they have saved with this change is now being “invested in the long tail of UX details that really make products feel great on Apple platforms.”